When a floor finish is stripped from a floor, an aqueous stripping solution is often applied to the floor. Because the floors in many buildings are rarely perfectly level, the stripping solution will flow to low points in the floor. Unfortunately, the low points are not always conveniently within the area being stripped. As a result, the stripping solution will flow outside of the area being stripped, under doors, fixtures, furniture, display shelves, or off the floor onto adjacent surfaces, such as carpeting. This can cause unnecessary additional work refinishing adjacent areas, damage to fixtures, such as severe rusting, or permanent damage to the adjacent surfaces, such as discoloration of carpeting. Additionally, when the bulk of the stripping solution is removed from the floor and a new finish is applied, the stripping solution that had flowed underneath the fixtures, furniture, and display shelves, can seep back out onto the new finish, causing additional repair work or unsightly damage to the new finish.
The current practices are to do nothing to control the flow of stripping material and repair the damage as it occurs, or to use plastic sheets and masking tape to seal off edges of the surface being stripped. Sealing the edges of the surface being stripped is problematic in that it is time consuming, difficult because the worker must bend over or crawl along the floor on hands and knees, and irregularities in the floor or taping process cause leaks and gaps that the stripping solution can flow through. Although spill absorbent pads or pigs are available, they are provided in only fixed lengths and are typically too expensive to use over a large area. Accordingly, a need exists for a fluid absorbent tape that is easy to use and is customizable for different sized areas.